Whether you are making a dessert for your own family or hosting a fancy dinner party this Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta is sure to be a big hit! It has a hint of lemon and aroma of fresh vanilla bean, which is sure to tickle your senses.
While panna cotta tastes absolutely fabulous all on it’s own, you can give it a little more flavor by topping it with raspberry coolie, lemon marmalade, or even just a dusting of cinnamon!
WHAT IS PANNA COTTA?
Panna cotta is an Italian dessert. It is sweetened cream thickened with gelatin and formed into a mold. The dessert may be enhanced with coffee, vanilla or other flavors.
Panna Cotta
Learn how to make panna cotta by following these step-by-step instructions
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup milk
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup sugar
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 whole vanilla bean
- 2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
- 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
- Cheesecloth or strainer
Instructions
- Combine 1/2 cup of milk, whipping cream, sugar and lemon zest in a sauce pan.
- Remove the innards of 1 vanilla bean and add both innards and pod directly to the saucepan.
- Stirring continuously, bring mixture to a gentle simmer over medium heat.
- Remove mixture from heat, cover and let sit for 15 minutes.
- While that sits, mix 1/2 cup milk and gelatin in a small bowl. Let rest for about 15 minutes, until gelatin is fully dissolved.
- Return milky mixture to the stove top and bring it back to a simmer.
- Add gelatin mixture, stir until fully dissolved.
- Using a cheese cloth or fine mesh strainer, strain out lemon zest and vanilla bean pod from mixture.
- Use a ladle and put mixture into 6-8 lightly oiled ramekins (mine were a little more than 3/4 cups each in size).
- Place in the refrigerator and let cool overnight (at least 8 hours).
- Serve with a sauce of your choice.